


Ball of Sunshine

by unenchantingly



Series: Heliophilia [4]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Daughter of Apollo!Reader, F/M, Greek Mythology - Freeform, Photokineses, Pre-Relationship, Reader-Insert, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-10
Updated: 2020-11-10
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:21:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27451162
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unenchantingly/pseuds/unenchantingly
Summary: “So who are we fighting?”Clarisse’s nostrils flared in annoyance, “We? Look, I’m already stuck with Prissy Jackson here, I don’t need Suzie Sunshine too.”“Oh come on Clarisse, we could use a master archer like Suzie to shoot those birds out of the sky if they bother you again,” Percy said, a smirk tugging at his lips.You raised an eyebrow, before turning to Clarisse with a similar smirk, “I agree with Prissy.”-----Alternatively: you help Percy and Clarisse retrieve her father's chariot from her immortal brothers.
Relationships: Percy Jackson/Reader
Series: Heliophilia [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1959973
Comments: 2
Kudos: 54





	Ball of Sunshine

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! You have stumbled about a story with an overarching plot following a daughter of Apollo and the trials and tribulations she faces. It will start in Percy Jackson and The Olympians and continue into Heroes of Olympus. It is a Percy Jackson/Reader fanfic. Comments and constructive criticism are very much welcome!
> 
> The characters and the plotline of the books are not mine and belong to their respective owners. The story is mine, however, as is the character of 'the reader'. Please do not publish this story elsewhere without asking for my permission.
> 
>  **Additional note:** in this story, a immortal god hits on the fourteen year old reader. It's quite innocent and nothing comes of it, but I thought I would mention it since I wrote it in forgetting that the reader is fourteen but I really liked the scene (and jealous Percy) so I thought I would keep it in. Anyway, this one's pretty long. It is based on the Stolen Chariot in The Demigod Files. Enjoy!

Suffice it to say, when your stepfather told you that the family was moving to Manhattan because he had been offered a new job, you were not sure what to think. You quite liked your hometown. It was where you were born, where your mother had met your father, and where you had spent nearly all your life (if you weren’t at Camp Half-Blood for the summer, that is). Then again, your first monster attack had been in your hometown, and your mother had gotten ill in your hometown. It felt good to leave, but it also hurt terribly. Still, Manhattan was not all that bad. The medical care was better, especially with your stepfather's promotion as chief of medicine at Lenox Hill Hospital in the Upper East Side. The schools were better too, and you and your stepbrother were lucky to get into some prestigious private school in the city. You kept forgetting the name of the school. You were not planning on staying in Manhattan for long, anyway. More and more, you had been debating whether you should stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round. The only thing that was keeping you from staying year-round was your mother, after all.

Your life in the Big Apple had been quite ordinary and you hated it. You faced ordinary things like homework, bus rides to school, and the incurable illness of your mother. Your school did not have an archery range, so you did not have your usual morning mindfulness ritual (which consisted of you hitting as many targets – moving and non-moving – as quickly as possible). You needed something to distract you, so you decided to sit in the park close to your school. You were supposed to be in class, but you figured your stepdad would not mind you skipping a class or two, given the circumstances.

You had been writing an essay on the Peloponnesian war when you caught sight of two people you never thought to see together. These, not more than ten feet away from you, seated on a park bench, were Percy Jackson and Clarisse La Rue. Either they had suddenly become friends, or there was something terribly wrong. You figured it was the latter.

Gathering your stuff and slinging your bag over your shoulder, you immediately jogged over to them, nearly dropping all your books in the process. You had not expected to see these two demigods together, but frankly, you were happy with the distraction it provided from your daily life.

“What in Hades are you two doing here?” you asked.

They looked up at you, startled. You had interrupted them as they were in deep conversation about something, and they obviously had not expected you to be here either. Percy said your name, confused, but he did not say anything else. He just stared at you. Clarisse was confused too, but her look of confusion was almost completely masked by the angry glare she was sending you. 

"Are you kidding me?" she snapped, "I have the worst luck in the world."

You ignored her, looking at Percy with your eyebrows raised.

"Uh,” he started, his eyes flickering to Clarisse’s for a moment before returning to you, “I heard Clarisse's screams while I was in class, so I thought I would help her out." Percy explained, "What are you doing in Manhattan?"

“I live here,” you said simply.

“In the park?”

You rolled your eyes and let a laugh escape your lips, “No in an apartment building on the Upper East Side. My stepfather got a new job so, naturally, we moved here.” You shrugged it off as if it was not a topic worth talking about, but by the look that Percy had given you, it was clear that he was not finished with the subject. “So who are we fighting?”

Clarisse’s nostrils flared in annoyance, “ _We_? Look, I’m already stuck with Prissy Jackson here, I don’t need Suzie Sunshine too.”

“Oh come on Clarisse, we could use a master archer like _Suzie_ to shoot those birds out of the sky if they bother you again,” Percy said, a smirk tugging at his lips.

You raised an eyebrow, before turning to Clarisse with a similar smirk, “I agree with _Prissy_.”

Clarisse looked like she was going to burst of anger, but you could see that she was desperate, and you knew that this had to do with her father. You’d known Clarisse for quite a long time. She was always working overtime to impress her father, the God of War. She had major daddy issues. You could relate of course (all demigods has daddy or mommy issues), although your father would not beat you to a pulp if you disappointed him. Apollo would probably write a haiku about it, which was a non-violent punishment, but a punishment nonetheless.

“Alright fine.” she eventually mumbled, followed by a string of Ancient Greek curse words.

You took a seat beside Percy on the bench and he started to explain, “Clarisse took her father’s chariot for a joy-ride and her two brothers stole it from her-“

“Brothers?”

“Yeah, her immortal brother-“ Before Percy could explain any further, he was interrupted by a man, a teenager, who was leaning against a telephone pole. You guessed that the teenager was Clarisse’s brother, considering he dressed in the same fashion; ratty jeans, a black t-shirt topped up with a leather jacket, and a bandana. The only difference was that his eyes were flaming red.

“Phobos.” Clarisse growled, “Where is the chariot, you jerk?”

“You lost it. Don’t ask me,” Phobos replied, sporting a teasing smirk signature to older brothers. It was not long before you realized that you were standing face to face with the God of fear. Racking your brain, you tried to remember what you knew about the minor god, and quickly remembered that he was born to Ares and Aphrodite, and he had a twin brother named Deimos, the God of terror. You figured he got his looks from his mother, as Phobos was quite handsome.

Though you probably should not let Percy or Clarisse hear that.

Phobos appeared on the bench beside you and Percy, having wedged himself in between the two of you. He had his arms rested on the bench behind your head. Percy immediately pointed his sword at him, holding the tip at the throat of the God of fear. He did not seem phased. “Who’s your little boyfriend, Clarisse? You have to get help fighting your battles now?” he sneered.

The thought of Percy being Clarisse’s boyfriend would have made you laugh, but Phobos creeped you out.

“He’s not my boyfriend! He’s not even my friend.” Clarisse exclaimed angrily, “That’s Percy Jackson.”

“Son of Poseidon, eh? The one who made Dad angry?” Phobos seemed surprised, and for a moment you thought you sensed a bit of nervousness, but then he laughed, “Oh this is too good. You’re hanging out with a sworn enemy?”

“I’m not hanging out with him!” Clarisse protested.

Phobos had not noticed you, or he had not bothered to look at you, which you figured was a good thing. You saw his eyes starting to glow red, and suddenly, Clarisse screamed, swinging her sword wildly in the air as if she was being attacked, but there was nothing there.

“What are you doing to her?” You wanted to stand up and help Clarisse, convince her what she was seeing was not real, but Phobos pulled you back onto the bench, his full attention on you, despite Percy’s sword still digging in his throat.

“And who might you be? You’re a gorgeous little thing aren’t you?” he purred, and Percy increased the pressure on his throat, his eyes narrowed into a dangerous glare. Phobos merely rolled his eyes and disappeared, before reappearing on your other side. His interest in you seemed to distract him from torturing his sister, as Clarisse had stopped screaming and she was trying to catch her breath, “Oh, hit a nerve have I? Don’t tell me she’s your girl, Jackson? She’s way out of your league.”

“ _She_ is sitting right here.” you interrupted, your cheeks red from anger (though you were a little flustered as well), “and _she_ is frankly out of _your_ league.”

Phobos considered you for a moment, and you wondered if you had angered him, but instead, he laughed, “Feisty are we? I quite like that.”

“I’m also fourteen years old,” you told him, narrowing your eyes.

Phobos merely shrugged, “Age is such a boring detail for immortals. The time it takes for you to become eighteen is just a blink of an eye for me.”

You continued to glare at him. You did not have your bow by hand. It was discussed as a tennis racket (which you thought was stupid, but you did not really have anything else), and your quiver was disguised as a backpack. You did not think there was enough time to unzip the backpack, stroke the hilt of the tennis racket, notch an arrow, and shoot it, as Phobos stood merely feet from you. You did have your short blade _drinker of light_ on you, hidden under your jacket _._ The weapon was given to you by Chiron when you first came to Camp Half-Blood. It was good for short-range combat, a beautiful blade adorned with stylized embossments of lions on its blade and on its pommel. You quite liked it, but you were better with your bow.

"What it is that you fear, beautiful?" Phobos asked, ignoring the glares he was receiving. "Snakes? Ah, a daughter of Apollo. That explains why you're so radiant. . ."

"Leave her alone, you creep." Clarisse sneered, raising her sword at her brother. 

"Where's the chariot?" Percy added, sounding almost angrier than Clarisse. 

Phobos turned to Percy, "And what do you fear, Percy Jackson?"

"Give the chariot back," Percy demanded his grip firmly around the hilt of his sword, ready to swing. "I took on your dad once. I'm not scared of you."

"Nothing to fear but fear itself. . . . isn't that what they say?" Phobos grinned, "Well, I am fear. If you want to find the chariot, it’s across the water. You’ll find it where the little wild animals live – just the sort of place you belong. . ."

Phobos winked at you and disappeared soon after, leaving you, Clarisse and Percy in the park, boiling with anger. 

“He’s worse than his father,” Percy grumbled.

You shrugged, “Let’s just get the chariot back.”

Clarisse nodded, and the three of you were on your way. You headed to the subway and Clarisse explained that she was the first girl in a long time to get a shot at this coming of age ritual. You were not too sure about the details. You had not really been paying attention. You had been thinking about Phobos. He was a God (a minor one, but still a God) and he had been hitting on you, a mortal demigod. For a moment, you could not help but wonder whether it went like this with your father and your mother. You figured Apollo was a lot more charming than Phobos because your mother would never go for a creep like that.

“You okay, sunshine?” Percy asked, looking at you with concerned eyes.

You nodded, “So, where are we going?”

“Staten Island. There’s a small zoo there. We figure that’s where Phobos and Deimos are keeping the chariot.”

It was about three-thirty when you boarded the Staten Island Ferry. You had until sundown to get the chariot back or Clarisse was going to face the wrath of Ares. You leaned over the railing of the Ferry, watching the sun glisten on the open water. Percy took a place beside you. He was silent for the first few minutes before he turned his eyes away from the sea and focused them on you.

“So, you live in Manhattan now? That’s pretty cool. We’ll see each other more often.” Percy smiled, and you returned the smile. You had not thought about that yet. Percy living close to you was definitely a huge plus.

Then your smile faltered. You wanted to tell Percy about your mom, and your plan to go to Camp Half-Blood year-round, but you kept silent. You did not have the time to talk to him about it anyway, because the ferry lurched like it had hit a rock. You nearly tumbled overboard, but Percy held you back just in time. He pulled you to the front of the boat, where Clarisse was standing, her sword raised. You immediately grabbed your bow and quiver, ready to fire if need be. Your determination wavered when you were met with a giant sea serpent. You had not expected to see another snake so soon (you still had not fully recovered from the snake attack hoax in the Apollo Cabin).

You yelped in surprise and jumped back, keeping your arrow aimed at the giant serpent. On the back of the beast was an even uglier beast, and you figured he was Deimos. Phobos was a lot prettier.

“Hello, sister, care to play?” Deimos taunted, relishing in the screams that echoed the boat.

The sea serpent head-butted the ferry, and the boat trembled. Deimos laughed with delight as the tourists fell overboard trying to make an escape.

“That’s it.” Percy turned to you and Clarisse and stretched out his arms. “Grab on, we’re going for a ride.”

Clarisse started at Percy as if he had lost his mind. You rolled your eyes and pushed her towards Percy. You grabbed his arm tightly and the three of you leaped off of the deck. You squeezed your eyes closed, but you soon realized that you had only been in the water for a moment. Percy had willed all the water to swirl around you until you were ten meters up in the air, supported by the water. We headed straight for the monster.

“You think you can tackle Deimos?” Percy yelled at Clarisse.

She nodded, ‘Just get me within three meters.

When we were close enough, Percy turned to you. He did not say anything, but you knew the place. “You stab, I shoot?” you asked, and he grinned.

Clarisse jumped, crashing into Deimos and sending him flying into the water.

The sea serpent immediately set its sight on you and Percy, and you wasted no time sending your arrows towards it. When you managed to his the serpent in the eye, both of you knew that it was the perfect moment to strike.

Percy grabbed your hand and you nodded at him. After silently counting to three, you jumped onto the serpent. The sea beast trashed around, desperately trying to get you off of his back, but he was dazed by the wave of saltwater that hit him. You had slid down to the serpent’s tail, but you managed to stay on the beast. Grabbing your bow, you started shooting again, while Percy tried to climb up to the head so that he could kill the beast.

The serpent’s head snapped towards you and it tried to capture you between his teeth as if you were a tik that was annoying him. When his jaws opened, you saw an opportunity. You aimed at the back of its throat and just when you were about to release your arrow, you lost your footing and your bow slipped from your fingers. The serpent snapped forward and ate your bow. The stupid beast _ate_ your favorite weapon.

You dived into the water, not wanting to share the same fate as your bow. When you resurfaced, you could not find the serpent and for a moment, you wondered if it had eaten Percy, but then the son of the sea god appeared right beside you. He asked you if you were okay. You nodded, “I’ll be a lot better once we’re out of the water, though.”

Percy laughed and wrapped his arm around your waist, “Hold on tight,” he said, and you wrapped your arms around him, clinging onto him as you surged to the shore. You picked up Clarisse along the way and once you were on land, you realized that the sun was starting to go down.

“We’ll never make it in time,” Clarisse sighed.

You frowned, “I did not just have my favorite weapon eaten by a sea serpent for you to be all pessimistic and give up. We are going to get that stupid chariot and we are going to teach your stupid brother’s a lesson.”

That made both Clarisse and Percy grin. You dragged yourselves to the zoo. The ticket lady almost did not let you in, but you slipped in an extra ten bucks and she let the three of you pass.

“There it is!” Clarisse pointed at the golden and red chariot as it sat at a crossroads between the petting zoo and the sea otter pond. Tethered to it were four black horses. They were breathing fire out of their nostrils, which was a bit excessive in your opinion, but you figured Ares liked to show off.

“I can’t spot Phobos and Deimos anywhere. This has to be a trap,” you said.

Clarisse muttered her agreement, before turning to face you, “You should probably wait here.”

“Excuse me?”

“You don’t have a weapon.” Clarisse pointed out.

You glared at her, grabbing your short blade _drinker of light_ and showing it to her, “You were saying?”

Clarisse rolled her eyes, “Come on. You’re terrible at short-range combat. You’ll get hurt.”

You were surprised, “Are you actually concerned about my well-being, Clarisse?”

“What? No-“

“I’m touched, really, but I’ll be fine. Let’s just get the chariot. We’re losing time,” you jerked your head towards the sun.

“Fine.” Clarisse frowned, “I’ll try to get the reins. The horses know me. You two cover me.”

You and Percy shared a look as Clarisse approached the chariot. How were you supposed to cover her if you had no ranged weapons? Did she expect you to throw your swords at the horses?

As expected, as soon as Clarisse got close to the chariot, Phobos and Deimos appeared in the chariot, sporting pitch-black battle armor and terrifying grins.

“The hunt is on!” Phobos yelled, knocking Clarisse aside and charging the chariot towards you and Percy. You grabbed Percy’s hand and tugged him along with you as you ran. You knew that you could not unrun a chariot, but you also knew that this was the best option.

As the chariot lurched forward and you and Percy dove apart. You immediately rushed towards the nearest gift shop, trying to find anything that would hurt if you threw it at Phobos and Deimos. The chaos that the two had caused, ensured that the gift shop was empty, so no one was going to scold you for shop-lifting.

You rushed outside with a bag of souvenirs filled with snow globes and figurines. Deimos and Clarisse were mid-battle, sword on sword.

Phobos was terrorizing Percy, and you quickly threw a snow globe at his head. Phobos turned, eyes narrowed dangerously, “Oh, come to join the party, princess?”

You continued throwing souvenirs at him, distracting him while Percy deuced his horses with water. After Phobos managed to get control of his horses, the chariot had turned into a tank and it was aimed right at the souvenir kiosk you just came out of. You had never run so quickly in your life. You sped towards the petting zoo, desperately not trying to get blast into bits like the souvenir shop.

When Phobos was nowhere to be seen, you frowned, trying to find Percy. Where in the name of the Gods could Percy be?

Then you saw the aquarium. Of course.

You rushed towards the entrance and you were surprised to see that Percy was standing frozen, staring into Phobos’s glaring red eyes.

“Stop it!” you demanded, and Phobos turned his attention to you.

“You’re very pretty and all, but you are starting to get on my nerves,” Phobos growled.

You charged at him, but you were determined not to look him in the eyes. If you met his eyes, he would show you your fears, and you would be paralyzed like Percy.

The notion of you charging into battle against a God to defend your paralyzed friend could be considered heroic, but it was actually very stupid. Clarisse was right. You were not good at short-range combat. Phobos managed to knock your blade out of your hand. You managed to deflect his blow and roll aside, nearly knocking Percy off of his paralyzed feet.

You quickly grabbed riptide from his hand and deflected Phobos’ blow, the sound of the clashing of swords ringing in your ear. Riptide was too big for you and you knew that you were not going to last long.

You were strictly on the defense, as you knew that any offensive moves would not work. You figured your best move was to get Percy to wake up from his daze. So while you did your best not to get maimed by Phobos, you started to call for Percy.

“Come on, Perce. It’s an illusion. Just like the snakes in cabin seven. It’s not real.” you called out to him, wincing at Phobos’ blade hit riptide once more.

“Percy, please. Listen to my voice. It is not real!” you tried again, only now, Phobos had managed to strike riptide from your hands. At least you lasted longer with riptide than you had with drinker of light.

“He can’t hear you, foolish girl. He’s trembling with fear. Look at your little hero now? Is he the one who’s going to save the world, or destroy it?” Phobos taunted.

You glared at him, but ignored his worlds, continuing to try to get through to Percy.

“What would happen if I strike him down now? Huh? I bet my father would be pleased, and we both know that you cannot defend him.” Phobos continued, raising his sword ready to strike down the son of the sea god.

“NO!” You rushed towards him, pushing Percy out of the way and standing in front of the sword. You closed your eyes and raised your arm as a shield, waiting for the sword to strike you, but instead, you felt a warm glow surrounding you. You opened your eyes and saw Phobos stumbling back, blinded by the sharp glow of light you were emanating, acting as a shield around you.

When the light faded, you felt weak. You barely registered it when Percy defeated Phobos and made him promise to leave Clarisse, and you, alone. 

Percy rushed over to you, supporting you as you tried to stand, "What happened? Are you alright? What was that light?"

"That was me," you told him, still wondering how you had managed to do that. 

Percy looked at you for a moment, before grinning. "That was amazing. You are a literal ball of sunshine, aren't you?"

You shook your head, laughing, "Come on, _Prissy_ , we need to get the chariot back."

Percy helped you onto the chariot, which had been transformed into a Harley-Davidson. He got on in front of you, red-cheeked as you wrapped your arms around him, just to ensure that you would not fall off, of course. Then he drove off trying to find Clarisse. You could feel that your energy was draining and that you really needed to rest. When the war chariot came to a stop, you started seeing spots before your eyes. The last thing you saw before passing out was Percy trying to convince Clarisse that she was not seeing her father, but an illusion that Deimos caused, and then all you could see was darkness. 

———————————

You awoke at the sounds of your voice. Opening your eyes carefully, they met Percy's sea-green eyes, filled with relief. 

"You're alright, thank the Gods" Percy sighed. 

You sat up and realized that you were sitting in Ares' War Chariot, which had regained its original form. Clarisse was steering, and Percy sat beside you, holding some nectar and ambrosia. He urged you to take some, and you instantly felt better. 

"What happened?" you groaned, still feeling light-headed. 

"You passed out." Clarisse snickered. 

You rolled your eyes and looked at Percy for an explanation. 

"We defeated Phobos and Deimos, and we're at Ares' temple." Percy told you, "I think that light blast you created tired you out." 

"What light blast?" Clarisse asked, suddenly interested. 

You thought for a moment. "It is rare and I don't know any demigods to possess it, but Apollo has the ability to manipulate light. The ability is called Photokinesis. I was unarmed and about to die. The light acted as a shield." You paused for a moment, looking at the sun as it disappeared behind the sea. You wondered if your father had something to do with it. You had never been able to manipulate light before, so why now? 

When you arrived at the temple, Percy and Clarisse decided that it was best that Percy leaves before Ares returned. You agreed. 

"Come one, sunshine. I'll take you home." Percy said, helping you out of the chariot. 

You smiled, leaning into him as he guided you towards the subway. You had turned to wave at Clarisse, and the daughter of Ares sent you a brief smile - a very brief smile before she headed over to her father's temple. 

You had wanted a distraction from your ordinary life, and a distraction you got. 

You grinned, "Let's get some ice cream before you take me home." 

Percy returned your grin. "Sounds like a plan." 

**Author's Note:**

>  **Timeline** : Post-Sea of Monsters (The Demigod Files)  
>  **Reader** : Fourteen years old  
>  **Percy** : Fourteen years old  
> 


End file.
